Watchman&#39;s clock.



R, G. ROSE. WATGHMANS CLOCK. APPLICATION FILED MAR. 10. 1910.

Patented Sept. 27, 1910.

Inventor.

I I 6 Attorneys kiwi? Witnesses fjwpmk RICHARD C. ROSE, OF OSCEOLA, ARKANSAS.

WATCHMANS CLOCK.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 27, 1910.

Application filed March 10, 1910. Serial No. 548,356.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, RICHARD C. Rosn, a citizen of the United States, residing at Osceola, in the county of Mississippi and State of Arkansas, have invented a new and useful Vatchmans Clock, (Case 13,) of which the following is a specification.

This invention has reference to improvements in watchmens clocks and its object is to provide means co-acting with the clock whereby the clock will automatically set itself into condition to cause an alarm if the watchman fails to properly operate means at a predetermined station or stations at a predetermined time.

The invention will be best understood from a consideration of the following detail description taken in connection with the ac companying drawings forming a part of this specification, in which drawings the figure is a diagram illustrating a watchmans clock with the invention applied.

Referring to the drawings there is shown a clock 1 which may be of any approved type and need not differ from ordinary clocks so far as the time side of the clock is concerned. The clock is provided with a hand or arm 2 driven by the time movement or otherwise driven in timed relation to the time movement and this hand or arm is designed to form part of an electric circuit and is therefore made of conducting material either wholly or in part. In the path of the arm 2 are contact fingers 3, one or more in number, and each contact finger is constantly in the path of the hand or arm 2 so as to be electrically engaged thereby at predetermined times, preferably once in each complete movement of rotation of the hand or arm 2 about its axis. Each finger 3 may be a light spring finger, or a spring brush may be carried by the hand or arm 2, but however theelectric contact is brought about the structure is such that the accuracy of the time movement of the clock is not sensibly aifected, while at the same time ample provision is made for good electrical connection at these points. The hand 2 may be one of the time indicating hands of the clock or may be a separate arm hidden from vision if such be desirable.

At an appropriate point there is mounted an armature lever a and if desirable any appropriate number of armature levers 4 may be distributed about the clock so that a con tact brush 5 on each armature lever 4 may be moved into and out of the path of the hand or arm 2 under conditions to be hereinafter described. In the path of the lever at is a stop pin 6 arresting the movement of the lever in one direction when the contact finger 5 is in the path of the hand 2. The movement of the armature lever a toward the pint is caused by a spring 7, or where conditions permit may be caused by gravity. The armature lever 4 has its free end in the path of a latch arm or lever 8 provided with a hook or latch end 9 adapted to underride the free end of the lever a when the latter is moved in a direction to carry the finger 5 out of the path of the hand 2. The lever S is urged in a direction to engage the armature lever a by a spring 10 or otherwise and a stop pin 11 may determine the movement of the lever 8 under the action of the spring 10.

The lever at carries an armature 12 controlled by an electromagnet 13 which in turn is included in a circuit made up of conductors 1a, 15 leading to a distant point constituting a watchmans station. One of these conductors, say the conductor 14 includes a circuit controlling device 16 shown in the drawings as a simple circuit closing means, but it will be understood that any type of circuit closing and opening device may be used. Beyond the circuit controlling device 16 the conductor let leads to a battery 17, the other side of which is connected to the conductor 15. It will be understood of course that where the circuit controller 16 is sufliciently remote a suitable ground connection may be used.

The armature lever 8 is provided with an armature 18 controlled by an electromagnet 19 one side of which is connected by a conductor 20 to the hand or arm 2 while the other side of this magnet is connected by a conductor 21 to the spring finger 3 adjacent to the spring finger 5 of the armature lever 1 controlled by the latch lever S in turn controlled by the magnet 19. The conductor 21 includes a battery 22 or other suitable source of electric energy.

It will be understood that the lever i may be duplicated as many times as may be desired about the clock with its finger 5 in the path of the arm 2 under conditions to be described and that the fingers 3 may also be duplicated, there being a finger 3 for each magnet 19 and a lever at for each magnet 13. In the drawings two such magnets 13 and 19 with the parts controlled'thereby and two watchmens stations are indicated, but it will be understood that more stations may be installed as desired.

Each armature lever 4 is connected by a respective conductor 23 to one side of a bell 24 or other signal or indicating device while the other side of this bell is connected by a conductor 25 to the hand 2 and by branch conductors 26 to the side of the magnet or nagnets 19 remote from that connected to the respective batteries 22, although of course the batteries 22 may be included in the conductors on either side of the magnets 1?).

Let it be assumed that the hand 2 is approaching a contact finger 3 and ultimately engages the same, the armature lever 4 being at the time moved against the action of the spring 7 so as to be there held by the head end 9 of the lever 8 which latter is held in the position named by the spring 10 while the circuit of the magnet 13 is open at the controller 16. As soon as the hand 2 engages the contact 3 there is established a circuit from the battery 22 through the conductor 21 to the finger 3, thence by way of the hand 2 to the conductor 25 thence to the conductor 26 and to the magnet 19 and from the latter to the battery 22. The magnet 19 is thereby energized and the armature 18 together with the lever 8 is attracted against the action of the spring 10 to a sufiicient extent to carry the head 9 away from engaging relation with the lever 4 and the latter is immediately moved toward the pin 6 by the reaction of the spring 7 which latter has been compressed by the movement of the lever 4 to engaged position with the latch lever S. The release of the armature lever 4 has caused the movement of the spring finger 5 into the path of the hand 2 and if the movement of the hand 2 be continued said hand will ultimately be brought into electrical contact with the finger 5 and therefore establish a circuit from a battery 27 included in the con ductor 25 through the latter to the hand 2, thence by way of the finger 5 to the armature lever 4 and from the latter by the conductor 23 to the bell 24 and back to the battery 27 thus causing the bell to give a signal, or if the bell be replaced by some other indicating or signaling device then the operation of such device will be brought about and will cease as soon as the progressive movement of the hand 2 has carried it out of electrical contact with the finger 5. If however before the finger 2 has reached the finger 5 the circuit controller 16 be moved to the closed circuit position then there is established a circuit from the battery 17 by way of the conductor 15 to the magnet 13 and back to the battery through the circuit controller 16 by way of conductor 14. The magnet 13 is thus energized and the armature 12 is attracted thus moving the armature lever 4 against the action of the spring, compressing the same until the free end of the lever 4 snaps back of the head 9 of the latch lever 8 and the latter moves into the path of the free end of the lever 4 under the action of the spring 10. This causes a movement of the finger 5 out of the path of the hand 2 so that when the latter reaches the position formerly occupied by the finger 5 it will not engage the same and so no signal will be produced. Therefore if the watchman arrives at the proper station at the proper time and closes the circuit at the controller 16 then the finger 5 is moved out of the path of the hand 2 and no signal is given, but if the watchman be negli gent or be detained for any reason and does not close the circuit at the proper circuit controller 16 then the hand 2 having first caused a release of the armature lever 4 will on its progressive movement engage the finger 5 and so cause a signal in the manner already described. A finger 3 and a coacting finger 5 may be placed so closelv together as to make it incumbent on the watchman to arrive at the proper station and having there arrived to close the circuit within a very short time interval so that if he arrives at the station too early and closes the circuit before the hand 2 has reached the finger 3 this closure will be ineffectual and the signal will be produced at the time the circuit at the local station should have been closed. If the watchman arrives too late then the signal will already have been given. The time interval during which the circuit controller 16 may be effectively closed may be made as short as desirable or as long as desirable. The time interval during which the controller 16 may be effectively operated is readily adjustable by moving the finger 3 toward or from the corresponding finger 5 and for this reason each finger 3 may be mounted on a plate or support 28 which may be slotted or otherwiseformed so that the finger may be secured in adjusted position by a suitable clamp screw 29 or in any other manner.

It will be understood that the hand or arm 2 may be properly designated a contact hand or arm whether it be actually included in the circuit or whether it causes the closing of the circuit between two contacts by bridging them or by forcing one against the other.

lVhat is claimed is 1. In a watchmans clock, a contact hand or arm, a contact constantly in the path of said hand, an armature lever, a contact finger carried thereby and movable into and out of the path of the hand by said armature lever, an electromagnet for moving the armature lever in a direction to withdraw the contact finger carried thereby from the path of the hand, a charged circuit including the magnet, a circuit controller in said circuit,

a latch for holding the armature lever with the finger carried thereby in the withdrawn position, an electromagnet controlling the latch, a charged circuit including the hand, the contact constantly in the path thereof and the last named electromagnet, and a charged circuit including an indicating means and also including the armature lever and the hand.

2. I11 a watchmans clock, a contact hand or arm, a contact constantly in the path of said hand and adjustable to determine the time of contact with said hand, an armature lever, a contact finger carried thereby and movable into and out of the path of the hand by said armature lever, an electromagnet for moving the armature lever in a direction to withdraw the contact finger carried thereby from the path of the hand, a charged circuit including the magnet, a circuit controller in said circuit, a latch for holding the armature lever with the finger carried thereby in the withdrawn position, an electromagnet controlling the latch, a charged circuit including the hand, the contact constantly in the path thereof, and the last named electromagnet, and a charged circuit including an indlcating means and also including the armature lever and the hand.

3. In a watchmans clock, a contact hand or arm having a progressive movement, a contact terminal movable into and out of the path of said arm and having a normal tendency toward movement into the path of said arm, an electromagnet for withdrawing said contact from the path of the arm, manually controllable means for causing the energization of said magnet, electromagnetic means for locking the contact out of the path of the arm, and means controlled by said hand or arm for causing the energization of the last named electromagnetic means to release the contact to movement into the path of the hand or arm prior to the arrival of said hand or arm at the position of the contact when in the path of said arm.

4:. In a watchman s clock, a contact hand or arm having a progressive movement, a contact terminal movable into and out of the path of said arm and having a normal tendency toward movement into the path of said arm, an electromagnet for withdrawing said contact from the path of the arm, manually controllable means for causing the energization of said magnet, electromagnetic means for locking the contact out of the path of the arm, and means controlled by said hand or arm for causing the energization of the last named electromagnetic means to release the contact to movement into the path of the hand or arm prior to the arrival of said hand or arm at the position of the contact when in the path of said arm, and an indicating means and actu ating circuit therefor responsive to the engagement of the hand or arm with the contact movable into and out of the path thereof.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto aflixed my signa ture in the presence of two witnesses.

RICHARD C. ROSE.

WVitnesses R. M. PARKER, F. T. CHAPMAN. 

